Letters to the editor: Troops deserve better care

December 15, 2012 12:01 AM

December 15, 2012 12:01 AM

I completely agree with Gregory Waldron's letter regarding the alarmingly high suicide rate in the military (Erie Times-News, Dec. 6).

My 22-year-old son, Specialist Jordan Lawhon, is stationed at Fort Stewart in Georgia. In March, he came back from his one-year tour in Afghanistan. Not even halfway into his tour, his vehicle was blown up by a roadside bomb. Thankfully, no one was killed, but my son suffered a concussion and other injuries. When he was "processed" after his return, the military doctors basically blew him off when he was asking for help for his post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. He was told he would be "fine."

A couple of weeks later, long story short, he was in a civilian hospital in the psychiatric ward for being severely depressed and suicidal. Oh yes, the Army gave him a Purple Heart for his injuries, but denied him proper care when he desperately needed it.

For a while after he was released, the Army made sure he attended his appointments and so on, but shortly after that, he was on his own. Any attempt to seek further help is rather brutally discouraged by the higher-ups.

So today, my son still has PTSD issues and has recently been reliving his experience with being blown up. He desperately needs to go to an off-post doctor to receive counseling and medicine, but has not been able to at this point. Oh, did I mention he has a wife and new baby?

So yes, there is substandard and inefficient (or nonexistent) care for these soldiers. I, too, want the nation to know about our soldiers who are in need of proper care. In my son's unit alone, there have been multiple suicides.

What can we do? Write to our congressmen. Get the ball rolling to change the way the military deals with its soldiers who have given so much of themselves to this country. Jordan Lawhon, I pray for you every day that you will get the help you need before it is too late.

Victoria Lawhon|Girard

Pension trouble goes back years

In his article, he states that in 2001, then-Gov. Tom Ridge doubled pension benefits. The state pension obligations will rise to $6.1 billion over the next five years. Solution: Cut the benefits in half. It is Gov. Tom Corbett's duty to rectify the Republicans' past mistakes.

Workers in the auto industry lost or had their pensions cut when the financial institutions in this country put the nation and the world into a recession. As usual, the Republicans hurt the country and the Democrats are supposed to fix it.

However, it is difficult to accomplish anything with the Republican majority in the House of Representatives obstructing legislation more than 200 times in the past four years.

Cloyd J. Rose|Erie

Paterno's name belongs on award

As a Penn State graduate who has been a football season ticket holder for 44 consecutive years, I am quite pleased that the Maxwell Football Club has chosen to honor the Nittany Lion senior football players with the Thomas Brookshier Spirit Award on March 1.

Most of the country's sports enthusiasts, especially the national media, figured this team would be lucky to win three or four games at best. Most are now treating this eight-win season as a miracle of biblical proportions. I'm sure that's why the Maxwell Club decided to honor this fine group of student-athletes in this fashion.

Ron Jaworski, president of the Maxwell Club, said he was astonished by the performances of these senior athletes. Interestingly, a vast majority of Penn State alumni like me were not the least bit surprised.

Why? These Penn State seniors were recruited and coached by one Joseph V. Paterno. This is the same coach Paterno whose grand experiment consistently turned out similar high-character young men each year of his sterling career.

Ironically, this is the same Joe Paterno who had his name stricken from the Maxwell Club Coach of the Year Award in November 2011. Much like the Big Ten and others, the Maxwell Club rushed to judgment without the benefit of due process.

How could the Maxwell Club best honor these Nittany Lions on March 1? Announce that Paterno's name is being rightfully restored on their Coach of the Year Award.

Thomas M. Bradley|Altoona

Norquist followers draw criticism

Who is Grover Norquist?

Please, Republican representatives: If your idea of following the Pied Piper over the cliff is a good thing, so be it. But the rest of us do not want to go with you.

What power does Norquist have over you anyway?

K.C. Porter|Girard

President Obama is like Robin Hood

We the people have once again elected Robin Hood to another four years in the White House. President Barack Obama will take from those of us who have worked all of our lives and paid taxes and give it to those who have never worked and never paid taxes.

In this great country we all have the right to vote, whether we pay taxes or not, but soon the Robin Hood followers will outnumber the taxpayers. Who will pay then?

George E. Diller|Erie

Pension woes need commission

We are indebted to Oren Spiegler for his letter ("Rendell blamed for not dealing with pensions," Erie Times-News, Dec. 5). Mr. Spiegler clearly explains the problem, how it started, and the result that now amounts to an unfunded liability of more than $41 billion.

Mr. Spiegler asks how we can get $41 billion to put the plan on a sound financial footing?

The answer may be with the current annuitants. They could rescind the Ridge increase, or for the benefit of all take an actuarial reduction so that the plan becomes solvent along with safeguards so this does not happen again.

We call on interested parties including current annuitants, bipartisan legislators and taxpayers to form a commission to make recommendations.

Their findings will act as a beacon for our state as well as other states and national plans under similar stress.

Ray Simpson Jr.|Erie

They really aren't entitlements

This letter is addressed to all my state and federal representatives and senators. I am weary of politicians calling Social Security and employer-supplied health benefits "entitlements." I have worked my entire adult life buying into the theory of delayed gratification.

My employer and I have contributed to Social Security through FICA taxes and I have accepted health benefits from my employer by deferring wages. I do not believe that industry in America truly wants to pay their employees the actual cost of their labor in coin rather than in benefits and participation in federal programs (most of which are tax write-offs, i.e., "welfare" for industry).

The labor unrest that tampering with these accepted deferments will cause decades of anxiety and ill will. Do industries and politicians really want to twist the tail of working America?

Susan Smith|Erie

Miss Pennsylvania could use your vote

Not sure if many of you know, but we have a local girl, Jordyn Colao, who was crowned Miss Pennsylvania in the spring. She will be competing for the Miss America crown in Las Vegas in January.

The contestant with the most votes is automatically placed in the top 15 on the final night of competition on Saturday, Jan. 12. Let's show our support for our local girl!

Vote for Jordyn to become the next Miss America at www.missamerica.org/videocontest. There is a limit of one vote per Internet-accessible device throughout the voting period.